Irda imposed Rs 5-cr fine on 12 insurers New Delhi: Insurance regulator rda slap

Insurance regulator rda slapped a fine of nearly Rs 5 crore during 2012-13 on 12 insurance companies, including HDFC Life and ICICI Prudential Life.

HDFC Life paid Rs 1.47 crore, while ICICI Prudential Life had to shell out Rs 1.18 crore for failure to comply with various provisions of the Insurance Act 1938.

The insurance regulator had imposed a fine of Rs 76 lakh on PNB Metlife for violation of various guidelines. Tata AIA had to pay a penalty of Rs 49 lakh during 2012-13.

In all, penalties were levied on 10 life insurance companies and two non-life insurance companies for  non- compliance with various regulatory stipulation, Irda said in annual report 2012-13.Apart from monetary penalty levied on insurers, penal actions were also initiated on various non-compliant intermediaries as well, it said.

The annual report also noted that insurance penetration in India, which surged till 2009-10, has slipped since 2010-11 on account of slowdown in life insurance premium as compared to the growth rate of India economy.

The sector has reported consistent increase in insurance penetration from 2.71 per cent in 2001 to 5.20 per cent in 2009, the report said.